Work Text:
The day Hu Tao celebrated her seventeenth birthday, she cheerfully dragged Zhongli to start writing his will and picking a coffin, while Xiao was sitting on the roof, listening quietly through a layer of green tiles.
In Liyue, the seventeenth birthday is considered a big day. Hu Tao had lost her family at a young age, but her friends could hardly forget this momentous occasion. The evening of her birthday, Xiangling, Xingqiu, Chongyun, and many other youngsters all gathered at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor and celebrated with a feast prepared by Xiangling with everyone’s assistance. Even the Liyue Qixing sent their blessings and gifts out of respect for Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, which was after all one of the most ancient and important establishments in Liyue. Zhongli was there also; he combed Hu Tao’s hair as any father would for a young woman’s coming-of-age rituals.
All this Xiao did not see personally; he avoided such mortal gatherings as a principle. He remembered Hu Tao's birthday, of course, but planned to do nothing more than remembering it and perhaps placing a secret gift on the windowsill in the dead of the night, until Lumine asked him to deliver a gift on her behalf.
"I thought through my upcoming travels, and it seems that no matter what I will not be able to return to Liyue Harbor on Hu Tao's 17th birthday, so I can only ask you to deliver this gift for me," said Lumine, reluctantly putting out a smile and trying hard to dispel the dark clouds around her, but with no apparent success, "This is a divine weapon that I recently acquired. The spears and staffs I came across before in my travels are never suitable for Hu Tao, certainly I have seen nothing that compares to her own Staff of Homa. But this one might be surprisingly good for her. Please make sure you deliver the gift for me. And Xiao, while everything is still calm, please spend more time with her, with everyone."
Xiao pursed his lips. He thought about asking Lumine what she really meant, but in the end he only murmured, "If you need me, call me by my name."
Lumine nodded. She too seemed lost for words, and in the end she only let loose a long sigh and waved goodbye.
So on Hu Tao's seventeenth birthday, Xiao arrived at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor with Lumine’s gift. He arrived near midnight, the celebration had long been over, and the street was quiet, with only a few flickering lights remaining. He looked for the brightest-lit room and flew up to the roof, carefully listening and looking for an opportunity to place the gift in a prominent place without being noticed. The room directly below him should be the front room of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, and judging by the voices, both Hu Tao and Zhongli were still there. Suddenly moved by some strange inspiration, Xiao flipped aside a tile and peeked below. Hu Tao was lying barefoot on a bench and seemed to be studying something in her hand, her head resting on Zhongli’s lap. Zhongli was sitting there with a book in hand, his other hand stroking Hu Tao’s hair as one would a cat.
Xiao was still trying to make up him mind whether to leave, when Hu Tao suddenly sat up and clapped her hands, "Ah, there is another important thing, I almost forgot!”
"Well?" Zhongli glanced at the young girl.
"Now that I'm an adult, I have to make a will!" Hu Tao said, serious but calm, as if discussing a perfectly ordinary important thing, like tomorrow's work schedule, "In fact, maybe I can even pick out a coffin or something. But that’s just an afterthought, the will is the most important thing. Wangsheng’s work is crucial; I should not leave Liyue without a funeral house if anything were to happen to me. "
Xiao has known Hu Tao's eccentricity for a long time, still he could not help but lose a beat of breath upon hearing this. Hu Tao was only seventeen years old. Even if Xiao had to face the girl's death one day, it should be far in the future, when she is gray-haired and at peace with her long and fulfilled life, no? Why must he be reminded of such things now?
But Zhongli was perfectly nonchalant at such grisly speech, barely beat an eyelash. He responded with his usual calm voice, "That is indeed a good point. But as common sense suggests, you still have plenty of time. Must you write your will today? Are you not tired after a long day? Perhaps it is time for bed."
"I'm not tired!" Hu Tao indeed seemed perfectly energetic as she started looking for brush and paper all over the house. She even dragged out a book of coffin and urn pictures that Wangsheng Funeral Parlor has prepared for customers, flipping through the volume with enthusiasm.
Xiao watched from the roof, a little dumbfounded; he did not expect Hu Tao to be this...Unusual.
The only one who could be perfectly unperturbed at a time like this was Zhongli. He even had the mood to advise Hu Tao, saying, "Since you are doing on a whim, perhaps you should focus on your own personal matters in the will, for now at least. For matters and procedures related to Wangsheng, the will needs to be meticulous and accurate, otherwise it cannot achieve the contractual effect a will about a business operation should have. Even if you must write something down tonight, perhaps start with some ideas, but do not pen anything definitive regarding Wangsheng. Wait until you can consult Yanfei."
"Indeed. When I say I want to write a will, I do mean to deal with my personal issues. As for Wangsheng, we are much more than just me, right? Even if something were to happen and I should die young, even if I didn't get to set up a comprehensive charter, there is still you!”
At those words Zhongli finally briefly froze. His startled expression passed in the blink of an eye, and Hu Tao missed it entirely. Even Xiao, up on the roof and staring down intently, barely noticed that brief look of concern in his king’s face. But then Zhongli smiled and shook his head, saying, "If you might die young, then so might I. ‘There is still Zhongli’ is hardly a reliable emergency measure."
"Dying young? You?" Hu Tao tilted her head to look at her consultant for a long time, before laughing out loud, "Oh Mr. Zhongli! I can’t say for sure just what you are exactly, but I definitely know you are no longer 'young', right? Is there still a ‘dying young” for you? How old are you, sir? Have you reached the age when you should make a will?"
"What you say is very true," Zhongli said thoughtfully, "it seems that the time has indeed come."
Hu Tao laughed again, pushing the volume of coffin and urn pictures in front of Zhongli. She said, "Come, come, pick a coffin then, and it will be free of charge, think of it as employee benefit! Pick whatever you like, even if it is a coffin of gold-strand laurel wood. You know what? After all the bills I paid for you, even a coffin of gold-strand laurel wood seems like, as they say, a mere trifle.”
"Master Hu exaggerates my usual expenses again,” Zhongli smiled but pointed to another volume instead, "Will you pass that book instead? I think I will settle for an urn."
"Oh? You prefer cremation?" Hu Tao eyed Zhongli with surprise and approval, "Speaking of which, I hear that cremation is quite popular in Sumeru and Natlan, but here in Liyue people still avoid it. You know what they say, they want to return to the earth, to stone and dust to be received by the Geo Lord, blabla. I for one think cremation has many advantages, but it is difficult to convince the people of Liyue. Quite open-minded and progressive of you to choose cremation, Mr. Zhongli! I think I might refrain from calling you stuffy and old-fashioned for a week at least."
Zhongli flipped through the book in his hand and said, "It is not unreasonable to call me old-fashioned. And I do not choose cremation out of some progressive mindset, only that I do not know what might be left behind to bury should I pass away. I will count myself fortunate if there is enough dust to fill an urn for people to see and remember. Ah, just as I thought, we have these two porcelain masters still rendering their service; they make such wonderful porcelain vessels inlaid with precious stones. Such an urn would delight anyone.”
Xiao sat frozen on the roof. What did all this mean? Xiao knew Rex Lapis could be lighthearted enough to crack a joke, but surely not about his own life and death. The life and death of an archon was a weighty matter, nothing to be joked about, not even by the archon himself. Even when Rex Lapis decided to feign his own death in order to pass the guardianship of Liyue to mortals, he made sure to inform Xiao and create safeguards. So why was he saying such things to Hu Tao now? What was the deep meaning of this? If there was nothing amiss, why say so nonchalantly “fortunate if there is enough dust to fill an urn”?
Below him Hu Tao and Zhongli were discussing the issue of the will. Hu Tao said, “If you were to write a will, what would be in it? I am just asking, and you don’t have to answer, but if you don’t mind, Mr. Zhongli, tell me everything of course!"
Zhongli picked up a sheet of paper and said, “I don't have any treasures to distribute, so making a will is just a way to leave some words behind for those who need it. Then let me start from the most important, a letter for the Liyue Qixing."
It was now Hu Tao’s turn to sit frozen.
Being the seventy-seventh Master of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Hu Tao has long learned to treat death with respect and honest calm. She would never casually joke about life and death, but when she discussed the matter of making a will with Zhongli, she was also thinking of simple, normal things: unfinished work, personal trifle, and a well-executed funeral, something as serious and as ordinary as cleaning one’s home. She could never imagine that when Zhongli finally decided to put pen to paper for his will, it would be to write the fate of the nation. Zhongli was no longer even trying to veil his identity; who else could possibly need to leave words to the Liyue Qixinig? So it seemed that Zhongli’s identity was even more frightening than what Hu Tao had guessed in the past.
But Zhongli only smiled at her, and then began to write. But despite his easy smile Hu Tao no longer dared to come forward to see what was being written. She watched with bated breath from a distance away. Zhongli finished writing the letter, blew the ink dry, placed the sheet in an envelope, and finally wrote down in his flowing script "To Liyue Qixing " on the envelope.
Hu Tao swallowed and asked, "Do you want to write more?"
Zhongli gestured and said, "Since I have started, it is as well that I finish. There is no harm in being prepared."
"Who is this for again?" Hu Tao asked nervously.
"For Ganyu," Zhong Li answered with a thoughtful expression, "And one more for Madam Ping of Yujing Terrace, a few more for the adepti of Jueyun Karst. I will have to write to Lumine as well. Ah yes, I do need to leave a letter to Miss Xiangling; there is some important information to share with her, and I still need her help on that front."
Hu Tao took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly, repeating the action a couple more times. But she calmed down quickly. She has been facing life and death head on since her childhood days; no matter whose life or death she had to stare down, she would not lose her composure. So she gathered her thoughts and rubbed her eyes. The next moment she threw herself to Zhongli's side, hugging his arm and complaining sweetly, "What kind of nonsense is this! Even Xiangling will have a word or two from your will, and I have nothing? No, no, Mr. Zhongli, that wouldn’t do at all! Think about who has been paying your bills for so many years!"
Zhongli laughed and kissed the young lady's forehead. He said, "For you I have much more than a single letter discussing the fate of the world. I would never leave you alone in the world without any guidance; you will find everything in due time."
Xiao stood up abruptly, so ungraceful his motion that the roof tiles crackled noisily under his feet, and he could not even care. He had heard enough. Just as he was about to run away, he heard Zhongli's raised voice coming from inside the house, clearly calling for him, "Xiao, since you're here, won't you come in to see Hu Tao and wish her a happy birthday?"
Xiao jumped down from the roof and entered. He quietly repeated Lumine’s birthday wishes for Hu Tao and passed on her gift, before going back to staring at Hu Tao and Zhongli with a blank face. What was he going to say? What could he possibly say?
Hu Tao looked at him with an expression of mixed remorse and pity. She pulled on Zhongli's sleeve and whispered, "Mr. Zhongli, I think you scared the Conqueror of Demons."
Xiao responded almost reflexively, "I am fine."
He was the immortal yaksha, the adeptus blessed by Rex Lapis’s teachings; he was the one who lived longer than Liyue itself and witnessed countless lives and deaths. He should not fear change and death more than Hu Tao, a young girl who, like a summer flower, has only ever seen sunlight and nourishing rain.
"Xiao, don't mind what I have been discussing with Master Hu, there is no deep meaning in it," Zhonglo kindly reassured him, "We are at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor after all, and you know Master Hu’s character. She likes to openly face future possibilities. You have always appreciated this kind of rare and valuable insight, no? Please don’t let this trouble you."
Hu Tao also smiled and made a face at Xiao, before saying, "Methinks the Conqueror of Demons also wants to complain about not earning a line or two, never mind a whole letter, in your will. Are you going to say that his letter was prepared long ago too, just like mine?"
"He most likely does not need it. I should not depart this world before him," Zhongli turned to the yaksha and murmured softly, "Xiao, I promise you, if it is within my power to determine, I would not leave you behind."
He said this with such gentle certainty that the ambiguous wording did not matter. The god of contract would never break a deal, but he would leave enough room to face all possibilities at the seam of the covenant.
Is the act of leaving a will not a matter of contradiction, even of folly? If a dying man entrusts his family and friends with his last words, it may be a useful final act, for there exists some certainty that his wish would be heard, remembered, and propagated forth. Yet for an individual worried about the vagaries of the world or the tragedy of a life cut short, or for one preparing for war and calamity, what use is a will? Would there be anyone to carry out the will? Those who will be missed, those who need to be comforted, and those who are meant to be guided and protected, could they even reach the will on that fateful day in the misty future?
Zhongli left a box full of letters and notes for Hu Tao. Concerning matters of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, there were memos of major affairs, protocols of rites and rituals, financial audits and even very up to date investment recommendations. There were also dozens of letters for Hu Tao alone, all blessings for birthdays and life milestones, an eloquent wedding congratulation here, and a loving tribute to a first child there, enough to celebrate every joyful moment of an entire lifetime. It was hard to say—indeed hard to imagine—when and why Zhongli decided to write such an irrefutable farewell, but it was all for naught, for no one would receive these now.
Hu Tao was just one of many laid to rest on the final battlefield, the place where all fates were rewoven. She would no longer celebrate her eighteenth birthday, nor would she ever celebrate her wedding or her first child, like many once bright souls. Had Rex Lapis met her in the chaos of the final battle, at the moment of her death, there might have been more tearful partings and desperate salvations, but that too did not happen. A war led by Rex Lapis would be meticulous and orderly, with every man, woman, and child playing his or her most suited role, living or dying to serve the vision of victory that was always beyond reach but never beyond hope. Such a war would have few happy (or unhappy) coincidences, and mortals were not meant to die beside their gods. When it was time for mortal men to stake their lives and their future, their god had long turned to a mere steppingstone.
After the dust of the final battle had settled, Xiao again stood in the half-empty front room of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, looking stonily at everything around him. He was invited by Yanfei to serve as an outside witness for the execution of Hu Tao and Zhongli’s will.
"Mr. Zhongli’s will is mostly just letter delivery," Yanfei was explaining the handling of the will, although Xiao did not know who she was explaining all this to, "Of the letters he left for Master Hu, many are about operations of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. After some negotiations with the remaining staff at Wangsheng, we decided that those letters should be kept in the Wangsheng archive. Other letters for Master Hu will be entombed with her. The rest of Mr. Zhongli's final letters have all been delivered. Letters for Ganyu are handed over to Lady Ningguang and Lady Keqing; those could contain information helpful to Liyue’s reconstruction, and they wanted something to remember Ganyu by, which the remaining adepti all agreed. Other letters for the adepti have all been collected by Mountain Shaper. As for the specifics of Mr. Zhongli's funeral, I think we need to discuss it some more. There are no remains, so... Perhaps we can entomb some personal effects in lieu."
Half in a trance, Xiao suddenly heard Yanfei say to him, "Xiao, he actually left a note for you too."
"No," Xiao said almost reflexively, "he would not leave me anything. He said I would not need it; he said he would not depart the world before me."
"Xiao ......"
Yanfei had held together remarkably well until now, but her voice finally cracked. She trembled as she pushed a small piece of paper into Xiao's hand, and she said brokenly, "Xiao, so many are gone, but today I pulled myself together. Because, because at least you are still here. I'm not asking anything of you, just… I just want you to know that no matter what, I am infinitely grateful that you are standing by my side now."
Xiao slowly unfolded the note that Yanfei had stuffed into his hand and saw there the familiar flowing script.
"If you are reading this now, it means I failed to keep my promise, and I hope to be forgiven.
If you wish to join us, I shall welcome you with all our old friends and rejoice in the reunion.
If you can stay, please greet the people of Liyue on my behalf."